Life Journey...: February 2008

Tuesday, February 19, 2008

Happy Birthday My Dearest Friend~

Treasures
by Ron Carnell

It's so hard to find the perfect breeze,

One blowing none too hard nor soft,

Carrying a scent of wild flowers,

And moving clouds about aloft.

It's so hard to find the perfect sky,

One blue and deep and bright,

Carrying a sense of opennessWith geese and wrens in flight.

It's so hard to find the perfect night,

One warm, quiet and unflawed,

Carrying a mood of solitude,

And a closeness to our God.

Yet no perfection's so hard to find

As that which you extend

And none I'll ever treasure more,

Than to simply be your friend.

On this Special day....
A Special girl was born...
A Special friend of mine whom I simply adore ~

Happy Birthday my dearest friend, Li Li~

Sunday, February 17, 2008

The Joy of Christmas

Pre-christmas celebration with my long-time buddies at Sentosa...

Picnic in a tent - Roast chicken, sparkling juice, ham, strawberries and Chocolates.. Plus Great fun, laughter, gift exchange and a fabulous company!

Thanks dear friends for the rocking time!

Feels as if we booked the whole place and we can do all the stupid stuffs without any reserve...

Ride through the Orchad road to admire the Chrismassy Lightings

On Christmas eve, we had amin-BBQ party with my FH's buddies.....

Delicious BBQ food, one of the more successful ones that I have been to...grilled prawns, sotong, bacon-wrapped chicken, otah...and the signature grilled lamb chop!

Red wines, chips, Royce chocolates and our fav Ass-hole "da-di"...

"Ass-hole" the 2nd time... ~ Sulking

"Ass-hole" the 3rd time, OMG!

Lastly, Christmas lunch at Jack's place.....

Saturday, February 09, 2008

Beijing

Some highlights during the weekend sightseeing while on a work assignment....

Forbidden City

Enjoying the scenery at the Summer Palace

Scaling the Great Walls at Badaling

Sawadee City

Day 1 (3/11/07) - SGD/BKK
0630 Depart Singapore
0720 Arrive Bangkok
0830 Check in Banyan Tree Bangkok
0930 Royal Tour
1745 Sunset at Vertigo bar

1900 Dinner at Celadon

2045 Suan Lum night market

Highlights:

**Chao Phraya Express: Wat Arun
**Royal Palace, Wat Pho, Wat Phra Kaeo (250B)
*National Museum (40B)
*Royal Barges Museum

Wat Pho, Wat Phra Kaeo

Sunset at Vertigo Bar (Banyan Tree)

Day 2 (4/11/07) - Shopping!!!
0800 Breakfast and Check out (MRT-Lumpini)
0900 Chatuchak Weekend Market (MRT-Kampheng Phet, BTS-Mochit)
1200 Lunch at Paragon

1700 Taxi from hotel
2005 Depart Bangkok

*Tourist discount card, VAT rebate

Highlights:
*Chatuchak Weekend Market

Shopping at Chatuchak, donning my new hat

The Cool Shot

~ courtesy of our friends' shades

Budget/Costs
Air Fare (inclusive tax) $190/pax
1N Banyan Tree $120/pax
Dinner at Celadon $80/pax
Other Meals $20/pax
Transport/sightseeing $110/pax
Shopping $80

Hanoi - Halong Bay Cruise

Day 1(22/11/07) - SGD/Hanoi

-1715 Depart Singapore TR308

- 2000 Arrive Hanoi

- 2130 Check in Hanoi Elegance 2

Hotel is small, but clean and comfortable. Location is good too!

(*get tickets for water puppets on 3rd day)

Late night Dinner as no dinner was provided on Budget carrier. Was totally famished that we risked the night street hawkers. No choice... but the noodles is really goood....!

Day 2 (23/11/07) - Halong Bay Cruise (Halong bay Lagoon Explorer)

– 0830 Pickup from Hotel

Highlights:

* Halong Bay

* Explore Sung Sot (Amazing) cave

4 hours ride... but the beauty of Halong Bay is worth it - trust me.

But of course, spend a little bit more for a well-equipped and comfortable cruise (Air-con, hot shower, clean bed) if an overnight stay is expected.

I loved the experience on our Junk! One of the most beautiful vessel at Halong bay, in fact, most photographed. Plus, it's quite luxurious... nicely furnished rooms with hot shower and air-con, small exclusive bar and sun deck for endless appreciation of the grand beauty at the bay. And it is equipped with the "silent" power generator, which they would switch to at night, so there's no worries that your room is just right besides the engine room.

This is one of the few Junk that can really operate by it's sail, though most of the time, it's operated by the motors. But due to its small size, this Junk can only take up to about 8 to 10 people at each time. So, book early!

*** Note: Beware of scams when you book your cruise online! I heard of stories where payment were made for luxurious cruise, but in the end they were put on cheap ones! SO, if you're interested in this luxurious Junk cruise, do your booking only with Authorised agent (Hanspan) or the Company - Tropical Sails.

Lagoon Explorer Cruise